Quarter construction for slippers



1954- R. R. BALUT QUARTER CONSTRUCTION FOR SLIPPERS Filed Jan. 26, 1953Raymond R. Ba/uf IIINVENTOR.

United States Patent 01 QUARTER CONSTRUCTION FOR SLIPPERS Raymond R.Balut, Shavertown, Pa.

Application January 26, 1953, Serial No. 333,290

1 Claim. (Cl. 36-58.5)

This invention relates to new and useful improvements and structuralrefinements in slippers, and the principal object of the invention is toprovide a slipper with an expansible and contractible quarter structure,such as will facilitate insertion of a foot therein in a simple,expeditious manner and without any possibility of bending or otherwisedeforming the quarter.

The above object is achieved by forming the quarter piece of the slipperfrom a pair of side members which are movable toward and away from eachother, and providing resilient means for urging the two side memberstogether so that they effectively hug the heel of the foot, but at thesame time, are sulficiently yieldable to permit the foot to be quicklyand easily inserted or removed.

Some of the advantages of the invention reside in its simplicity ofconstruction, in its efiicient and dependable operation and in itsadaptability to embodiment in slippers of various types and sizes.

With the above more important objects and features in view and suchother objects and features as may become apparent as the specificationproceeds, the invention consists essentially of the arrangement andconstruction of parts as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, inwhich:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the invention;

Figure 2 is a rear elevational view thereof, showing the spreadingaction of the quarter piece when the foot is either inserted or removedfrom the slipper;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the subject shown in Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary sectional detail, taken substantially in theplane of the line 4-4 in Figure 3; and

Figure 5 is a perspective view of the articulated reinforcing frame usedin the invention.

Like characters of reference are employed to designate like parts in thespecification and throughout the several views.

Referring now to the accompanying drawings in detail, the slipper isdesignated generally by the reference character and embodies in itsconstruction a conventional sole 12, a toe piece 14 and a quarter piece16.

The essence of novelty in the invention resides in the construction ofthe quarter piece 16, the same embodying a bottom member 18 which issecured to the sole 12 and a pair of side members 20 which are connectedto the bottom member 18 and are movable toward and away from each other.

The bottom member 18 as well as the side members 20 of the quarter pieceare of a hollow construction and accommodate therein an articulatedreinforcing frame which is best illustrated in the accompanying Figure 5and is designated generally by the reference numeral 22.

2,693,039 Patented Nov. 2, 1954 The frame 22 consists of a base section24 and a pair of side sections 26, all of these sections beingpreferably in the form of circular rings of wire the base section 24being disposed within the base member 18 of the quarter piece, while theside sections 26 are similarly disposed within the side members 20 ofthe quarter, as is clearly shown in Figure 4.

The side sections 26 are movably connected to the base section 24 atdiametrically opposite sides of the latter by means of coil springs 28,the free ends of these springs being so anchored to the base and sidesections so that the springs also function to urge the side sections 26together.

Accordingly, when the invention is placed in use, the side sections 26enclosed in the side members 20 of the quarter piece will be effectivelyspread apart against the action of the springs 28 when a foot is eitherinserted or removed from the slipper as shown in Figures 2 and 3.However, once the foot is in position in the slipper, the heel of thefoot will be effectively hugged by the side members 20, as will beclearly understood.

To further assist urging of the side members 20 together, an elasticband 30 extends between and is connected to the side members at the backof the quarter piece. For ornamental purposes, a suitable bow 32 may bestitched to the band 30 if so desired.

It is believed that the advantages and use of the invention will beclearly understood from the foregoing disclosure and, accordingly,further description thereof at this point is deemed unnecessary.

However, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur tothose skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention tothe exact construction shown and described, and accordingly all suitablemodifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within thescope of the appended claim.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

In a slipper, the combination of a sole, a quarter piece comprising ahollow bottom member attached to said sole and a pair of hollow sidemembers connected to said bottom member and movable toward and away fromeach other, and an articulated quarter piece reinforcing frame formedentirely from wire material and comprising a ring-shaped bottom sectiondisposed in said bottom member, a pair of ring-shaped side sectionsdisposed in the respective side members and having lower edges thereofjuxtaposed to opposite side edges of said bottom section, and a pair ofcoil springs rotatablv embracing the juxtaposed edges of the bottom andside sections, the ends of said coil springs being anchored to thebottom and side sections whereby to connect the same and urge the sidesections together.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 252,778 Klein Jan. 24, 1882 747,390 Echols Dec. 22, 1903904,254 Fox Nov. 17, 1908 1,972,899 Odell Sept. 11, 1934 2,313,577 PlantMar. 9, 1943 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 24,694 Great BritainDec. 24, 1895

